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Earlier this month, Olympic athlete Lindsey Vonn suffered a terrible crash during an event.
Medics airlifted her off of Cortina d’Ampezzo. She has undergone multiple surgeries since then.
Unfortunately, things were even worse for her than the medical side of things.
Within hours of her crash, her beloved dog died.
Two tragedies within hours of each other
On Wednesday, February 18, Olympic athlete Lindsey Vonn took to her Instagram page to share her heartbreak.
“Leo Vonn,” she began her caption. “2013-2/9/2026.”
Vonn wrote: “Leo has passed away and joined Lucy and Bear up in heaven.”
She expressed: “This has been an incredibly hard few days. Probably the hardest of my life.”
Vonn then admitted: “I still have not come to terms that he is gone.”
“The day I crashed, so did Leo,” Vonn pointed out, referring to her crash during the downhill at the 2026 Winter Olympics. Her complex tibial fracture required multiple surgeries before she even returned to the US.
“He had been recently diagnosed with lung cancer,” she shared, adding: “(He survived lymphoma a year and a half ago) but now his heart was failing him.”
Vonn acknowledged: “He was in pain and his body could no longer keep up with his strong mind.”
She recalled: “As I [lay] in my hospital bed the day after my crash, we said goodbye to my big boy.”
Vonn lamented: “I had lost so much that meant something to me in such a short amount of time. I can’t believe it.”
Leo will always be part of her story
“My boy has been with me since my second ACL injury, when I needed him most,” Vonn detailed.
“He held me on the sofa as I watched the Sochi Olympics,” she wrote. “He lifted me up when I was down.”
Vonn gushed: “He [lay] by me, and cuddle me, always making me feel safe and loved..”
She acknowledged: “We have been through so much together in 13 years.”
Vonn admitted: “It’s going to be a while before I emotionally process things but I know he will always be with me.”
“I know he’s up there with Lucy and Bear and my mom and grandparents and so many people I have lost in the past few years,” Vonn affirmed.
“And I takes solace knowing he’s not in pain anymore,” she added.
“There will never be another Leo,” Vonn mourned. “He will always be my first love.”
She then shared an update, that she would be: “Heading in for more surgery today.”
Vonn concluded: “Will be thinking of him when I close my eyes I will love you forever my big boy.”
Our hearts go out to her at this time. Though she will always feel this loss, we wish her a rapid and full physical recovery so that she can continue to process her grief.
